Training with pen raised Texas Blue Scaled Quail

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hi-tailyn
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Training with pen raised Texas Blue Scaled Quail

Post by hi-tailyn » Fri Jan 31, 2014 9:39 am

Texas Blue Scaled Quail, California Valley Quail, Gambel Quail, Mountain Quail, Mearns Quail,

There are game bird farms that sell these other species of quail.

Don't know if they are wild type or have been bred the same as the bobwhite.

Has anyone used them for training, or in Johnny Houses?

They cost more than usual bobwhites.

art hubbard
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Re: Training with pen raised Texas Blue Scaled Quail

Post by art hubbard » Fri Jan 31, 2014 10:01 am

We catch wild California quail in traps and use them for training, put them in launchers and release them, never shoot them. Training for steady to the flush. They do well in my pigeon coop. I don't know if they would recall. They are sure strong flyers not like bobwhites..

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hi-tailyn
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Re: Training with pen raised Texas Blue Scaled Quail

Post by hi-tailyn » Fri Jan 31, 2014 5:27 pm

On a couple sites they say they are wild birds that they are raising and getting eggs from.

They do state that the birds are more nervous than bobwhites.

They sell eggs for $2.79-$2.95 depending on how many you buy. They don't produce the large numbers like the bobwhite breeders.

Are bobs the only ones that would recall to johnny house?

Even if they would stay in the habitat that we are building would be a great plus.

I don't know much about some of the breeds and how they act in the wild.

Is there one that is more like bobs, where they will stay put once pointed? I have hunted blues and they are hard for young dogs, but they can be lots of fun.

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DonF
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Re: Training with pen raised Texas Blue Scaled Quail

Post by DonF » Fri Jan 31, 2014 9:18 pm

A club I was in years ago got some Valley Quail. They said they recall better than Bob White's.

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Highway Ends Kennel
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Re: Training with pen raised Texas Blue Scaled Quail

Post by Highway Ends Kennel » Fri Jan 31, 2014 9:45 pm

I've used Bobwhites (regular and Reds), Gambles Quail, and Blue's in a Johnny house. They will all recall if left in the Johnny house for at least 2-weeks before released. I think overall the Bobwhites seem to survive better and recall more often to the JH. I've also had pretty good luck with the Gambles. The Blue's didn't recall nearly as well. Also, the Gamble's and Blue's will want to run on you instead of holding for the dogs. I've had pretty good luck with getting the Bob's to fly and flush hard by putting their food or water up high in the JH so they have to fly to get to it each day.

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hi-tailyn
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Re: Training with pen raised Texas Blue Scaled Quail

Post by hi-tailyn » Sat Feb 01, 2014 11:26 am

Highway Ends Kennel wrote:I've used Bobwhites (regular and Reds), Gambles Quail, and Blue's in a Johnny house. They will all recall if left in the Johnny house for at least 2-weeks before released. I think overall the Bobwhites seem to survive better and recall more often to the JH. I've also had pretty good luck with the Gambles. The Blue's didn't recall nearly as well. Also, the Gamble's and Blue's will want to run on you instead of holding for the dogs. I've had pretty good luck with getting the Bob's to fly and flush hard by putting their food or water up high in the JH so they have to fly to get to it each day.
Thanks.

Has anyone used a dividing board between food and water stations, where the birds haft to fly up and over to get to food or water? I have been thinking of doing that in mine. My JH's are old dog kennels and are 6' x 12' so they have space to fly up and over to get some exercising. I do have 1x6 ledge 4' up just above the covered bottom side of the JH's. They do get some exercise if they want to see out.

Would using these wild bird eggs hatched, then put into a surrogater work better than bobs?

One of the bird farm says they feed the chicks mealworms along with the crumble. To help get them used to insects as young birds.

Always looking for ways to get better birds to work dogs with. Don't care to shoot any.
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roaniecowpony
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Re: Training with pen raised Texas Blue Scaled Quail

Post by roaniecowpony » Sat Feb 01, 2014 11:41 am

Of the mentioned quail, the mearns will be the one to hold tightly more than the others. The gambels will be more inclined to run and flush, with the California/valley quail close behind, IMO.

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Re: Training with pen raised Texas Blue Scaled Quail

Post by Wildweeds » Sat Feb 01, 2014 12:42 pm

My buddy the bird farmer has raised Valleys and scalies............ They are REALLY REALLY WILD acting.Get close to the pen and they go ballistic.I'd say 100 times more wild than pen raised bobs.He had an escape of valleys and scalies when his father in laws dog ran through the chickenwire,the ones that found freedom could not be caught,they would run and fly on approach,couldn't get close enough to them to capture with a net.

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hi-tailyn
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Re: Training with pen raised Texas Blue Scaled Quail

Post by hi-tailyn » Sat Feb 01, 2014 1:01 pm

Wildweeds wrote:My buddy the bird farmer has raised Valleys and scalies............ They are REALLY REALLY WILD acting.Get close to the pen and they go ballistic.I'd say 100 times more wild than pen raised bobs.He had an escape of valleys and scalies when his father in laws dog ran through the chicken wire, the ones that found freedom could not be caught,they would run and fly on approach,couldn't get close enough to them to capture with a net.
Have you tried them is a JH or a release program and have habitat for them to keep in the area?

Is it against any wild life laws to capture wild bobs and get eggs from them to raise and release wild bird chicks or use in JH's?

Isn't that what these breeders of the blues, valley quail, etc. doing?

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roaniecowpony
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Re: Training with pen raised Texas Blue Scaled Quail

Post by roaniecowpony » Sat Feb 01, 2014 4:37 pm

Wildweeds wrote:My buddy the bird farmer has raised Valleys and scalies............ They are REALLY REALLY WILD acting.Get close to the pen and they go ballistic.I'd say 100 times more wild than pen raised bobs.He had an escape of valleys and scalies when his father in laws dog ran through the chickenwire,the ones that found freedom could not be caught,they would run and fly on approach,couldn't get close enough to them to capture with a net.
I think the quail hunters in the west hunt a completely different and much more difficult bird(s) (valley, gambels, mountain) than the bobwhite hunter of the eastern part of the country. The exception is the mearns of AZ & NM. The mearns is a tight holding bird that a pointing dog can locate and the hunter can take his time getting there.

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Highway Ends Kennel
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Re: Training with pen raised Texas Blue Scaled Quail

Post by Highway Ends Kennel » Mon Feb 03, 2014 8:13 pm

I use Bob-Whites because they seem to recall the best, survive the best in a JH, and are also the most economical. They also hold the tightest when working dogs. Starting in late April you can get day-old Bob White chicks for about $1.75/EA and then raise them to juveniles. Put them in the JH's 3-Weeks before they're full grown and finish them out there.

One thing I've found helpful is to put an open access door next to the bird funnel. Open it up and let them go in and out this way for a few days before you try to have them use just the funnel. You also have to be fairly confident that there are no small predators lurking around as they will also be able to utilize the door.

This JH is about 5 years old, I finally brought it in to do some repairs.

Image

I've also found that if the JH's have a "sun ledge" the birds will automatically fly up to it and spend most of the day there, except when it is very hot outside. This helps them to become strong flyers.

Image

Wildweeds
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Re: Training with pen raised Texas Blue Scaled Quail

Post by Wildweeds » Mon Feb 03, 2014 8:24 pm

Raised as preserve shooters only,yeah his big escape had them hanging around awhile but since they all got loose and no call birds in the pen,the recall was zero,we have really wet weather here and are not in a rainshadow and with a high predator rate from ground and sky they stand about as much of a chance as ice surviving at the equator.Theres a few places where the valleys have taken hold just south of here where there is a rainshadow.
hi-tailyn wrote:
Wildweeds wrote:My buddy the bird farmer has raised Valleys and scalies............ They are REALLY REALLY WILD acting.Get close to the pen and they go ballistic.I'd say 100 times more wild than pen raised bobs.He had an escape of valleys and scalies when his father in laws dog ran through the chicken wire, the ones that found freedom could not be caught,they would run and fly on approach,couldn't get close enough to them to capture with a net.
Have you tried them is a JH or a release program and have habitat for them to keep in the area?

Is it against any wild life laws to capture wild bobs and get eggs from them to raise and release wild bird chicks or use in JH's?

Isn't that what these breeders of the blues, valley quail, etc. doing?

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Re: Training with pen raised Texas Blue Scaled Quail

Post by fishvik » Tue Feb 04, 2014 7:48 am

hi-tailyn wrote:Is it against any wild life laws to capture wild bobs and get eggs from them to raise and release wild bird chicks or use in JH's?
art hubbard wrote:We catch wild California quail in traps and use them for training, put them in launchers and release them, never shoot them. Training for steady to the flush. They do well in my pigeon coop. I don't know if they would recall. They are sure strong flyers not like bobwhites..
In Idaho the trapping or netting any wild upland game bird is unlawful.

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